Special Collections and University Archives holds over 3,000 collections; more than a million items ranging from medieval codices and rare books to literary and historical manuscripts, university archives, original art, photographs, architectural drawings, and ephemera. The department preserves regional history, provides curriculum support, and assists researchers in many fields. Frequently Asked Questions

Mission

Special Collections and University Archives is the primary repository for the University of Oregon's archives, rare books, historic photographs, and one of the largest historical manuscripts collections in the Pacific Northwest. Our mission is to acquire, preserve, and make available a clearly defined set of primary sources and rare books, reflecting the written, visual, and audio history and culture of Oregon, the Pacific Northwest, and selected aspects of American and world history. Our diverse collections support all types of research, from K12 education to international scholarship. We strive to play an active and creative role in the teaching, research, and service missions of the University. (2/17/2010)

Access

Any adult may use our collections, and closely supervised teenagers.

You must register with SCUA. We require that you bring a valid government-issued ID to verify your registration information. Remote reseachers, please see our webpage on registering and requesting materials before your visit.

There is no cost for viewing our collections. There are fess for scanning and publication permissions.

Off-site collections require at least two weeks to transport. PLEASE contact us at spcarref@uoregon.edu well in advance of your visit so we can be sure we have your collections available.

You need an appointment to see architectural drawings and medieval manuscripts due to special handling requirements. Please give us advance notice of at least three week days to view these materials. Please contact us at spcarref@uoregon.edu to arrange your visit.

We do not allow access to glass-plate negatives due to handling and fragility issues. You may request to have duplications made through our copying service.

Traveling? PLEASE contact us at spcarref@uoregon.edu well in advance of your visit so we can be sure we have your collections available.

Paging is done every hour on the half hour, beginning at 10:30 AM. Paged materials are available on the hour, and the last pull of the day is at 2:30 PM. Materials already on hold are accessible at any time curing our public hours.

Unprocessed/unarranged collections. As a default, unprocessed/unarranged collections are not accessible. Under certain circumstances, based on the size of the collection, privacy issues, state of disarray, preservation issues, etc., a collection may be made available.
If you are interested in viewing unprocessed collections, filling out and submitting this form helps us prioritize processing efforts

Special Collections grew from the work of the History Department, which began collecting materials about Oregon history shortly after the University was established in 1875. The Oregon Collection was developed for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition and formed the nucleus of the Rare Book collections augmented in the 1930s by the Burgess manuscripts. Special Collections was formally created in 1947as a library department under curator Martin Schmitt, who worked with Ed Kemp to acquire manuscript, book and photograph collections. The Library was named official repository for University records in 1948. Archives rejoined Special Collections in 1998; University Records was separated from Archives and Special Collections in 2007.

Holdings

The collections include over 100,000 monographs, 17,000 linear feet of manuscripts, 19,000 linear feet of University Archives, 400,000 photographs, 5,000 architectural drawings, 5,000 original drawings and illustrations, and over 20,000 broadsides, pamphlets, postage stamps, autographs, and pieces of ephemera. Among the most notable holdings are the Ken Kesey papers, Abigail Scott Duniway papers, Senator Wayne Morse papers, Paul Wiener papers, James Ivory papers, Ursula Le Guin papers, Doris Ulmann photography archives, works by authors and illustrators of children's literature, and the Major Lee Moorhouse photographs of Native Americans. Holdings also include important collections of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts; incunabula; collections devoted to the writings of major individual authors, such as Ernest Haycox; and manuscript and archival collections that offer research opportunities in a wide variety of historical and literary subjects.

The manuscript, photograph, archives, and book collections in Special Collections and University Archives are the collections that make the University of Oregon Library a research library. These collections provide the materials for original scholarship and the resources through which the present generation of scholars can train the next in research methodologies and critical thinking. These collections, because of their significance, draw faculty, researchers, and talented students to the University, and thus help establish a national reputation for the Library and enhance the prestige of the University. They are at the very heart of the University's research and teaching mission.